Case Number 16192

Marley & Me (Blu-ray)

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All Rise...

Judge Kent Dixon has been experimenting with different brands to see which deliver sparkling teeth and a shiny coat.

Editor's Note

Our review of Marley & Me, published
March 31st, 2009, is also available.

The Charge

Life and love with the world's worst dog.

Opening Statement

Book to film adaptations are challenging at the best of times. The sheer
scope of a novel can easily wind up falling flat when an attempt is made to
bring it to the big screen. While there have been many skillful projects like
the Lord of the Rings Trilogy and many of the Harry Potter novels,
there have also been murky, overambitious attempts like David Lynch's take on Dune. So how does author John Grogan's novel
Marley & Me fare in this often rocky transition? Even more
importantly, does the film warrant a Blu-ray purchase over standard DVD?

Facts of the Case

Shortly after their wedding, John (Owen Wilson) and Jenny Grogan (Jennifer
Aniston) move to south Florida to escape the harsh northeastern winters. It's
not long before the couple begins to discuss having children and in an attempt
to stem the tide of motherhood, and acting on a friend's advice, John brings
home a Labrador retriever named Marley as a test to see if they're ready to
start their family or not. As Marley grows, so do the Grogans, realizing that
their one-dog wrecking crew really does bring out the best in them.

The Evidence

I have a confession to make right up front: I have not read the novel. It's
not that I haven't been curious, more that I have been very busy lately and the
bedside 'must read' pile continues to grow. As a self-confessed dog lover, a
family man, and a guy who likes to laugh, the film has managed to land on my
'must rent list' since we missed the theatrical release, so here I am. Knowing I
would be seeing the film sooner than later, I deliberately stayed away from the
novel, giving the film a fighting chance to stand on its own before I turn a
page.

You know going into this film that there are a few foregone conclusions:
there will be a dog who gets into trouble and some ensuing mayhem, there may be
several 'can the couple reconcile their differences and live happily ever after'
moments, and perhaps most concerning one once the disc starts spinning, will
this be another failed career reboot attempt for either Owen, Jennifer, or both?
Happily, Marley & Me delivers many retriever-generated laughs, the
movie is touching but never bogs down in smarminess, and Wilson and Aniston are
remarkably good together, with the supporting cast contributing to the strength
of the film in all the right ways. Also, any film that starts with REM's
"Shiny Happy People" can't be all bad, right?

This may seem like an odd statement, but the 1080p video presentation is
remarkably true to life. To me at least, Blu-ray video can come across as
hyper-real or artificial, which is fine and expected with a film like The Matrix, The Incredible Hulk, or Speed Racer, but it can keep the
viewer from fully engaging in a more mainstream release. Visually, Marley
& Me is razor sharp and some viewers may find the color palette to be a
bit bland, but as the movie progresses, you quickly come to realize that what
you're seeing on screen is incredibly true to life. While still a solid example
of high-quality DVD presentation on the audio and video fronts, the standard
definition version of the film that is included on disc two of this release just
doesn't have the dynamic color and fine detail evident throughout the Blu-ray
version. For me, the true test of a quality audio presentation on a film like
this is whether I notice it's there or not. The DTS-HD audio presentation is
crisp, well-balanced and never distracts from the story or on-screen action,
complimenting the video in every way.

Continuing on a high note, Fox delivers a solid sampling of extra features,
beginning with commentaries from director David Frankel on four extended and 11
deleted scenes. The release's five featurettes, all included in HD, cover a
broad range of topics: "Finding Marley" addresses the search for the
perfect dog to play the title character…since the film covers 14 years of
Marley's life, 22 different yellow Labs played the role over the course of the
film; "Breaking The Golden Rule" talks about the key messages behind
the film and some of the story elements that make the film unique; "On Set
With Marley: Dog Of All Trades" delivers a short but amusing subtitled
interview with Marley himself; "Animal Adoption" encourages viewers
who may want a particular breed of dog to consider adoption; and the subject of
"When Not To Pee" is best left to the imagination. In addition to the
featurettes and commentaries, a gag reel and a picture-in-picture "Dog
Training Trivia" track round out the extras nicely.

The Rebuttal Witnesses

I'm not a fan of the current trend of adding DVD and digital copy versions of
films to Blu-ray releases. I understand the digital copy is included in an
effort to control the distribution of quality copies of the film and stem the
tide of piracy and that all makes sense. But why include a DVD version of the
film when someone has already made the clear decision to purchase the film in a
hi-def format? Should consumers really be forced to pay for three versions of the film if all they really want
is one? For me at least, the DVD and digital copy versions of films on releases
like this are a waste of both storage space and money.

Closing Statement

Marley & Me takes a New York Times award-winning novel and based
on critical response successfully adapts the content for the screen. The
resulting film stands as a unique piece that is not purely comedy, romance, or
family film, but a delightful hybrid of several genres.

The Verdict

Marley & Me is a solid Blu-ray release of an entertaining and
moving film. Aside from the small reservations based on the potentially wasteful
inclusion of DVD and digital copies on this release, fans of the book or film
should definitely consider adding Marley & Me to their library.